Pokémon: The Movie Trailer arrived in 1999 as the promotional vanguard for Pokémon: The First Movie, timed to ride the franchise's explosive crossover from television and trading cards into American theaters. Warner Bros. handled distribution stateside, and the trailer itself became a cultural touchstone, airing ahead of other family films and saturating a fanbase hungry for any glimpse of the Pokémon universe on the big screen. For a generation of kids, this footage was often their first theatrical exposure to the franchise, making trailer reels from this release a notable artifact of that early marketing push.
This 35mm cell preserves a moment featuring four of the franchise's most recognizable original Pokémon together: Pikachu, Bulbasaur, Squirtle, and Vulpix. Pikachu remains the franchise's defining mascot, while Bulbasaur and Squirtle anchor the original starter trio, and Vulpix brings in one of the earliest breakout fan favorites from the first generation's broader roster. Grouping these four in a single trailer frame speaks to the promotional strategy of showcasing variety and charm to draw audiences in. As a trailer cell, it represents the film's advance presence, the teaser material built to generate anticipation before the feature ever reached projectors.
Authentication Findings8 checks
Consistent with a 35mm release-print trailer strip for Pokémon: The Movie (1999).
Gauge
Four perforations per frame along both edges, which reads as 35mm; the strip holds three frames.
Perforations
Four per frame on both edges, evenly spaced, rounded-rectangle holes that look cleanly punched with no visible tearing.
Soundtrack
A variable-area optical track runs beside the picture as two parallel waveform lines; Dolby Digital blocks, DTS timecode and SDDS tracks are not visible in this capture.
Edge print
Not visible in this capture
Base & colour
Clear to slightly blue-tinted base with a neutral-to-slightly-cool dye image; no obvious red shift or fading.
Projection history
No scratches, cue marks or splices seen at this size; the strip looks clean on the light panel.
Picture
Positive colour image; the three frames repeat the same shot and match the animated Pokémon characters of the film on record.
Era check
The analogue optical track and standard 35mm layout are consistent with a 1999 release-print trailer, though no digital soundtrack data is visible to narrow it further.
Read from the original intake capture shown below. Observations only — film is authenticated, not graded.
This original motion picture film element has been examined and authenticated by Crown Grading in partnership with National Film Vault, and encapsulated for archival preservation.
Why so little survivesRelease prints were leased to theaters, not sold. When the run ended they went back to the distributor to be destroyed, and most were. What collectors hold today came from the prints that escaped that order, and no new 35mm prints of these films are being struck.
CROWN SERIAL 000070033
Original Film CaptureAs received
Photographed on the light panel at intake, before encapsulation — tap to open full size
Tap to enlarge
